Chapter 201 - Fifth Level Key

"M-my blood?" she stepped back, uncertain.

Iacintho raised an eyebrow,

"My only motivation in helping your friends not to be caught is because they are your friends, Lex. If they aren't that important, this is a good time to get rid of them. "

She boldly extended her good wrist to her brother, who slapped her hand. Alexa hid her hand behind her, blinking without understanding,

"WHY DID YOU DO THIS?"

"How dare you offer your life for theirs? Are they that important? Would they do the same for you?" he questioned.

"Does it matter? They are willing to, since they have been looking for me for hours in a cursed forest!"

"Perhaps they have not yet realized that it is a cursed forest. They will have a hard time leaving without help, anyway..."

Well, Magnus was not that stupid to haven't noticed the forest was bewitched, at least she was sure of that.

"Do it," she again extended her wrist, closing her eyes so she wouldn't see.

"Don't be overdramatic, Lex. I just wanted to know how innocent and pure you were. I won't use blood, let alone yours. The magic won't be strong, nor do I want it to be. That would immediately alert Volos," he whispered.

"Don't make a fool out of me!"

Iacintho always made her feel that way, and she resented it with a pout.

"Focus now. I'll wait for you to find them first, to dispel the fog for a moment, so be as quick as you can. Don't try to talk to them, just find the soul of one of them and go beeline for it."

"How am I going to do this?"

He smirked to himself, and said,

"With the Fifth Level Key."

Lex's mouth fell open. His brother had risen quickly among the Lazarites ranks, not only because he was a Dallassenos, but because he was naturally inclined to mystical studies.

"Did you lose your power, Iacintho?"

"Yes, Lex. The Lich took the Light out of me by turning me into an upir. I'm not trapped in the midst like the Shades, I am trapped in this flesh that never rots or changes. I am certainly no longer a guide to the worlds beyond, as I can never walk them."

Alexa preferred to shut up at that moment about it. She took a deep breath,

"Then teach me the key. I won't have time to train, and I hope the spell upon me doesn't stop me from doing that ..."

"You know the truth. You know that everything that exists needs to take part in the cycle. Everything which is planted and grown, needs to be harvested. Everything which was under the ground will rise and what is above will descend. If you deny it, then blindness will fall upon you."

"I know," Lex said simply. About this, her mind had many doubts, but she didn't want to think about it, as it would inevitably make her fail.

Iacintho smiled, and taught her the key so his sister could advance in understanding the mysteries of existence.

The Light Bearer concentrated on the words that invoked this arcane knowledge and reached out to create the necessary flame. While the small flame flamed protected in her hands, Alexa softly uttered the words, allowing her conscience to join the flame.

As she had already seen a few times, the soul could manifest itself through blue flames that wandered in the darkness. Now, she could also make her flame wander, leaving her hands, but taking her conscience.

The experience changed her perception, feeling like a pulsating light, capable of floating, as in a dream. Alexa, however, could not really enjoy the sensation, since, barely able to control her movements, she heard Iacintho's voice,

"Go, Lex. We have all night, but they don't!"

This woke her up again to the urge to find Magnus. At the same time, Alexa was aware that her body was static by her sibling's side, and she felt a constant thrust in the opposite direction, trying to take it back to her body and break her concentration.

It took a lot of effort to get away from the body itself, and go like a supernatural, flaming wisp through the rusty garden gates, onto the road which disappeared into the fog and the forest.

'Magnus, where are you?'

Alexa saw the fog, but maybe because she didn't see it with normal eyes, but with her inner consciousness, she could see the sky and the big moon up there. The fog didn't affect her perception, as she felt anchored by her body somehow.

She remembered the position of the stars when she saw them from Emmeline's bedroom window, and realized she was northeast of the Sagnac residence. Alexa tried to go as fast as he could, but she knew that her movement as a 'wisp' was negligible, at best. She couldn't run or speed up more than if I were walking smoothly, or she felt like she would lose her connection. Alexa had to remain calm above all.

The princess heard the unmistakable sound of sword fighting ahead, and tried her best to get close, knowing she would find one of them, the captain, the knight or Magnus, fighting one of the upirs.

"WHAT IS THAT?!"

Her arrival, lighting up in the dense fog, was not possible to ignore, and she heard Sagnac's voice alert.

At that moment, an upir lunging on him was also surprised by the sudden luminosity that revealed his hiding spot before time.

Sagnac hit the place where the upir was, narrowly missing. But the upir found its end in Magnus's sharp sword, which appeared suddenly, and cut his neck with a violent blow.

The upir's head flew from his body with the impact.

And blood, a lot of rotten blood, gushed from the creature's neck, which soon collapsed to the ground. More blood than a human could have in his body. Alexa immediately thought of a tick, fat with its prey blood.

The sight was shocking for Alexa, and she hesitated, especially when the men pointed their swords at the pulsating wisp.

"Now!" she struggled to make her voice heard by her brother, where her body was. She couldn't see Iacintho so well now, without losing concentration.

Floating slowly, she circled the trio of warriors, trying to make them understand ...

"What is that?!" Sagnac repeated, sounding even more frightened to feel himself evaluated by the wisp that surrounded them.

The princess figured the fog mostly blinded them. She could see them quite clearly, although they even looked around to make sure they were close and covering each other's backs.

"Alexa ...?" Magnus finally guessed, and the wisp approached him, stopping in front of him for a moment. He reached out to touch it, but Lex just made the flame dance in front of him amicably, to show he guessed right.

Then Lex led the way, as the wind blew to dispel some of the cursed fog.

"Follow the light," Magnus said, still holding his sword.

Alexa thanked the Prince for his quick reasoning, as the wind didn't last long, but it was enough for them to understand that they should run to get out of the cursed forest.

She was getting exhausted and feeling the thrust getting stronger and stronger and each time she moved too far away from her body.

Alexa had barely reached the edge of the forest and she knew she couldn't take much longer, so she did her best to at least pass on a short message to Magnus,

"You mustn't ..." Her anguish at finding the right words that would convince him to wait and not only trying to blindly come to save her confused her mind. As soon as she tried to speak, she simply lost focus and found herself being drawn back into her body.

Alexa pulled the air to her lungs, frustrated,

"Damn it. I didn't get to warn you! I couldn't!"

"You at least guided them, didn't you? Was there enough time?"

"Yes, I took them out of the forest, but… I couldn't say it was enough. I don't know what he can think, I…"

" You bought them some time. You will be with them soon," assured Iacintho, trying to console Alexa. "Do you think you can try again?"

She should try.

Although exhausted, she now knew where they were, and maybe she could go faster. But another thought came to her mind,

"I saw them killing an upir, his head rolled away… If there's no fog they can get here, Iacintho; they can help us with the lich, Magnus can get us out of here! You don't know him, but he is capable!"

"Alexa!" Iacintho took her sister by the shoulder, hearing her feverish and nervous speech,

"Volos is a lich. Do you remember what that means? It is as if Mestre Petrus had become undead and had much more time to study. And ... a mere sword can not really kill Liches."

Alexa was speechless as she remembered that fact.

"I'll take you to him," his brother whispered, still with his hands on her shoulders. "But if I am found in the forest with you tonight, when 'they' were sent to do something for me ... I am afraid I cannot defend you."

Iacintho had had the courage to face a general like Doukas, even though he knew he did not have the training of a warrior. Alexa knew that he wasn't a coward. He didn't want her to be turned into an upir. That was what he was trying to avoid at all costs.

"I will try one more time. I will try to say that they must look for me elsewhere!" she exclaimed, straightening up to start all over again.

But they heard footsteps, and they turned in unison.

"What are you doing?"